P. Diddy’s legal team is calling for his immediate release, arguing that he has already served more than a year in prison.
His defence has asked the judge for a sentence not exceeding 14 months, which would allow the rap mogul’s near-immediate release after 13 months in custody at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center. The artist was acquitted on 3 July of the most serious charges related to sex trafficking and racketeering, but was found guilty of two violations of the Mann Act, linked to the interstate transport of adults with intent to engage in prostitution.
The defence, led by Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos, submitted a lengthy sentencing memorandum arguing that the verdict was largely favourable to their client and that punishing him for charges dismissed by the jury would be unjust and excessive.
“Mr Combs should be sentenced only for the charges on which he was convicted — transporting fully aware adults for sexual purposes — not for allegations the jury rejected,” the document states.
The legal team emphasised that P. Diddy has remained sober, incident-free, and under extremely harsh conditions in prison, where reports have surfaced of worm-infested meals and high levels of violence. They also appealed to his philanthropic record and the emotional toll on his family, especially his 84-year-old mother, Janice Combs, who wrote to the judge: “I just want to spend the last years of my life with my son.”
Prosecutors and the probation office are said to have requested a sentence five times higher than the typical average in similar cases. However, the defence warned that imposing penalties based on unproven facts would be a violation of due process. “We are talking about adults who crossed state lines voluntarily. There was no profit, nor proven coercion,” the filing reads.
P. Diddy could walk free in November if the judge accepts the request. However, the rapper still faces dozens of civil lawsuits over alleged sexual assaults, many of which remain active despite some being dismissed. His defence is also reported to have contacted Donald Trump to explore the possibility of a presidential pardon.
The final sentence will be delivered on 3 October, a decision that will determine the artist’s immediate future in one of the year’s most high-profile cases.
